Garage door operating mechanism



GARAGE DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM Filed Jan. 5, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVEN'TOR ATTORN EYJ' Oct. 10, 1939. T. c. DELL 2,175,957

GARAGE DOOR OPERATING MECHANISI Filed Jan. 5, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 W --J1'.- N

in 3 H h i h Ibo/mas C 262i INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 10, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application January 5,

1 Claim.

This invention relates to door operating mechanisms especially adapted for garages, barns and like buildings and has for the primary object the provision of a device of this character which will be easy to actuate to open and close the door, requiring only minimum effort on the part of the operator and will position the door when opened to give substantially full use of the doorway and the interior of the building with the door occupying a position within the building so as to be protected from forces exteriorly of the building.

With these and other objects in view, this invention consists in certain novel features of con-- struction, combination and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

For a complete understanding of my invention, reference is to be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation illustrating a door operating mechanism adapted to a building and door thereof and constructed in accordance with my invention.

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view showing in full lines the door in closed position and in dotted lines the door in a partly open position.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary transverse sectional View showing the door in a fully open position.

Figure 4 is a front elevation showing the door in a fully open position.

Referring in detail to the drawings, the numeral l indicates a fragmentary portion of a building having the doorway 2 closed by a door 3. My invention is adapted to the door and the building for the purpose of supporting the door when open in a position within the building and arranged horizontally and in close proximity to the ceiling of the building thereby giving free use of substantially the entire area of the doorway and to support the door vertically for the purpose of closing the doorway.

A substantially U-shaped member 4 is journaled to the door some place between the upper and lower edges of the door, preferably closer to the lower edge of the door than the upper edge, as shown in Figure 1. The substantially U- shaped member 4 consists of a connecting portion 5 and parallel arm portions 6. The connecting portion 5 is journaled in the door, as shown at I, and the arm portions each include parallel spaced bars 8 to which are secured pintles 9 by clamps ill. The pintles 9 are journaled in brackets ll secured to the door frame of the building. The free ends of the arm portions have adjustably 1937, Serial No. 119,148

secured thereto counterbalance weights l2 for the purpose of counterbalancing the door 3. When the door is in a closed position the weights are disposed above the journals of the arm portions of the member 4 and when the door is in an open position the weights are disposed in a position below the journals of the arm portions of the member 4.

A bracket I3 is hinged to the door 3 adjacent the upper edges thereof and has journaled thereto a roller I4 which travels upon a track l5 secured to the building and arranged horizontally therein and adjacent to the ceiling.

To open the door manual force is applied to one of the weights to start the weights from 15 their uppermost position and as said weights gravitate they act to move the door minus manual efiort on the part of the operator. As the weights move downwardly the lower edge of the door is caused to swing outwardly of the building and the upper edge to hinge and move inwardly of the building along the track l5 and as the weights assume their lowermost position the door assumes a horizontal position in close proximity to the ceiling of the building fully opening the doorway 2. To close the doorway 2, the weights are manually started in an upward direction and as they pass the journals of themember 4 they themselves assume the action of moving the door into a fully closed position. Thus it will be seen that the door is mounted by my invention in such a way that it can be easily moved to either an open or closed position with a minimum number of parts employed with such parts confined within the building and thereby protected. Also it will be seen that the door when in an open position is substantially confined within a building so as to be protected from forces externally of the building.

Strips l5 are secured to the door to the verti- 40 cal edges of the latter and terminate slightly above the journals of the member 4 to abut the door frame when the door moves into closed position. Strips l6 are secured to the vertical edges of the door frame above the journals of the member 4 and are abutted by the door when moving into closed position. The strips l5 and I6 cooperate with each other in sealing the vertical edges of the door with the door frame when the door is in closed position and their arrangement is such that the door may freely move into open position.

Having described the invention, I claim:

A door operating mechanism comprising a horizontally disposed track located in a building above a doorway, means connected with an upper edge of a door of said doorway and slidable on the track whereby said door may be moved in the building towards and from the doorway, a substantially U-shaped member including a connecting portion arranged longitudinally of the door and closer to the lower edge of the door than to the upper edge of said door, and a pair of parallel arm portions extending along the side 10 edges of the door, journals connecting the connecting portion of said frame on the door, clamps secured on said arm portions substantially intermediate the ends of the latter and including pintles, journals secured on the building adjacent the doorway and between the upper and lower edges of said doorway and receiving said pintles, and weights adjustably mounted on the arm portions between the free ends of the latter and the clamps.

THOMAS CHESTER DELL. 

